In the News

March 23, 2015 | This story was cross-posted at The Daily Beast. It was a cold winter night in Washington, D.C., not long after President George W. Bush won a second term, and the mood at the upscale Italian restaurant was downright celebratory. The most prominent guest was Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, but his table also boasted a…

March 16, 2015 | It’s that time of year again — Sunshine Week, when the spotlight is on government transparency. For each of the next five days, we’re going to highlight a bill that would bring immediate transparency to some of the darkest corners of Congress. Some of these measures are relatively noncontroversial, lots are bipartisan, and not one…

January 23, 2015 | It wasn’t a great year for Washington lobbyists, nor was it a terrible year. But according to a Center for Responsive Politics analysis of the now-complete 2014 lobbying disclosure data, federal lobbying expenditures declined yet again. Largely to blame for the drop was a weak fourth quarter, which comes as a surprise given the flurry…

January 6, 2015 | Seven years after President George W. Bush signed the Honest Leadership and Open Government Act (HLOGA) into law and then-Sen. Barack Obama, (D-Ill.) declared it to be “the most sweeping ethics reform since Watergate,” a joint analysis by the Sunlight Foundation and the Center for Responsive Politics suggests the effort may have misfired. A key…

December 5, 2014 | The 2014 election might have been the most expensive midterm ever, and it might have seen some of the most extravagant spending on wall-to-wall advertising ever — but when Election Day had come and gone, there was a surprising amount of money still sitting on the table. The Service Employees International Union PAC reported yesterday…

October 29, 2014 | This Center for Responsive Politics report is part of #Money14, a series of independent reports exposing the role of money in American politics. Join us for an event around the fifth anniversary of Citizens United to hear more about the participating organizations’ innovative research and work together for a more inclusive, transparent, and participatory democracy.…

October 14, 2014 | Different factions of the Republican Party are uniting in Kansas against a common enemy: the independent who is threatening Sen. Pat Roberts‘s re-election bid. The GOP has swooped in to support the three-term Republican incumbent against self-proclaimed centrist Greg Orman. National party operatives like Chris LaCivita have taken the reigns of Roberts’s campaign, according to Bloomberg.…

March 24, 2014 | A bill just signed by the president continues subsidizing homeowners in flood-prone areas. Neither it nor a 2012 bill that would have done away with subsidies over time happened without a lot of lobbying action.

February 10, 2014 | One of the sponsors of the "Government By the People Act" relies almost completely on individual contributions when it comes to campaign funds. What industries give to him most heavily?

January 15, 2014 | In anticipation of the Supreme Court's ruling in McCutcheon v. Federal Election Commission, the Center for Responsive Politics and the Sunlight Foundation have teamed up to look at the deep-pocketed donors who could give even more if the justices strike down another limit on the amount of money in U.S. politics.

July 1, 2013 | Lawmakers failed to reach a deal to prevent federally subsidized Stafford loan interest rates from doubling today, making students the latest casualty of the impasse gripping Congress and likely benefiting private lenders such as Sallie Mae.

June 14, 2013 | The Supreme Court found Thursday that human genes in their natural form cannot be patented, resolving the ongoing debate between medical research companies brought to national prominence in Association for Molecular Pathology v. Myriad Genetics. This is not the first time these two groups have been involved in proceedings in the nation's capital.

February 6, 2013 | Rep. Tammy Duckworth was mentioned in the news more in her first month of office than any other House freshman, according to a University of Minnesota study. She also spent more in her campaign than her colleagues in the class of '12.

November 16, 2012 | Whistleblower protections eaten away by the courts are back -- and yes, there was lobbying on the bill. Meanwhile, the Torch is back, showing up on federal lobbying registration forms for the first time.

November 6, 2012 | The role of outside spending in federal elections dramatically changed in 2010 with the Supreme Court's decision in the Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission case, which opened the doors for corporations to spend unlimited amounts of money advocating for or against candidates.
The Center for Responsive Politics estimates this election likely will cost $6 billion, shattering the previous record by more than $700 million, much of which is due to the massive increase in outside spending.

October 8, 2012 | CRP's collaboration with the Investigative News Network, the National Institute for Money in State Politics and news outlets in seven states yields a close look at wealthy donors' wide-ranging giving.

October 2, 2012 | Billionaire Georgian businessman Bidzina Ivanishvili appears set to be the new prime minister of his country. That'll have repercussions on K Street, as well: Ivanishvili has spent some of his millions hiring lobbyists to represent him in the U.S.

September 17, 2012 | The race between Tammy Baldwin and Tommy Thompson for a Wisconsin Senate seat shows Thompson's fundraising has been far less hearty than Baldwin's -- but what a difference name recognition makes.

July 20, 2012 | Amid recent media reports of banks manipulating interest rates, cheating consumers, and doing business with money launderers, the Center for Responsive Politics' early review of second quarter lobbying filings reveals a a noticeable drop in lobbying expenditures for a few (now infamous) banks. Barclays, whose CEO Bob Diamond resigned last month after the British bank was fined for manipulating information that affects a key interest rate known as LIBOR, barely registered a lobbying presence over the last three months.

June 18, 2012 | A joint investigation by the Center for Public Integrity and the Center for Responsive Politics has found that more than 100 nonprofits organized under section 501(c)(4) of the U.S. tax code spent roughly $95 million on political expenditures in the 2010 election compared with $65 million by super PACs.

June 7, 2012 | Like all presidential candidates, Mitt Romney is perpetually on the road. It's exhausting. So where does he lay his head when it's time for a precious few hours' sleep? Campaign expenditure reports show more money going to Marriott International than any other hotel chain, by far.

April 25, 2012 | By spring of each election year, most prospective House candidates have decided whether to jump into the frying pan, and the fundraising race is well under way. The first quarter FEC reports give some clues about how competitive the races are likely to be.

March 29, 2012 | The Mitt Romney of 1994 spoke passionately about the influence of money in politics and decried big-money campaigns like those of his then-Senate opponent, Ted Kennedy, and California Rep. Michael Huffington. But many Huffington donors from that era are now among the most generous contributors to Romney's presidential bid.

February 24, 2012 | An Obama fundraiser at the Orlando home of a Dallas Mavericks star last night wasn't the only evidence that NBA players and owners know how to play politics. They've contributed $2.6 million to federal candidates and political committees since 2009, according to research by the Center for Responsive Politics, and have shown a strong preference for Democrats.

September 23, 2011 | Welcome to the latest installment of OpenSecrets.org Mailbag, where we answer your burning questions about the role of money in politics, political influence and the work we do here at OpenSecrets.org.

September 22, 2011 | A bipartisan group of congressional representatives has introduced legislation to require the 12 members of the debt super committee to immediately enact transparency measures that would bring its work in full view of the public. And it can't come soon enough.

September 6, 2011 | Federal law requires the nine Supreme Court justices to annually disclose details about their personal finances. These records can reveal potential conflicts of interest and offer a look into the lives of the justices outside the chambers of the Supreme Court.

August 5, 2011 | It happened with typewriters, eight-tracks, VCRs and even flip-phones. Now advocates for the public financing of political campaigns fear that the system once used by most presidential candidates could also become irrelevant without an upgrade.

July 20, 2011 | Republican freshmen in the U.S. House of Representatives are still struggling to raise money for their re-election campaigns, according to a Center for Responsive Politics analysis of their second-quarter fund-raising reports. But among new GOP congressmen, the ones without any prior political experience are actually faring better than their more experienced counterparts.

July 20, 2011 | Given the on-going debt-ceiling battle and fights over what deserves government funding, tackling the reauthorization of No Child Left Behind seems like less and less of a reality. However, that's not stopping lobbyists from pushing for what they believe in when it comes to childhood education.

July 13, 2011 | When it comes to the government lobbying efforts of most religious institutions, their activities are notably shrouded in darkness, even as representatives of numerous faiths routinely pressure federal lawmakers on issues ranging from health care to international relations, poverty to abortion rights.

June 22, 2011 | A notable group of federal lobbyists -- 22 individuals to be exact -- made personal contributions to national party committees on both sides of the isle, according to an analysis of 2010 campaign donation records by the Center for Responsive Politics.
But a notable few -- 22 individuals to be exact -- made personal contributions to national party committees on both sides of the isle, according to an analysis by the Center for Responsive Politics.

May 31, 2011 | Republican members of the House of Representatives drove the passage of an amendment Wednesday that opposes a proposed executive order with significant campaign finance implications. The executive order would require federal contractors to disclose political contributions from the two years leading up to a potential contract.

March 18, 2011 | In late January, first-term Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.) called on the Interior Department to allow a regulated wolf hunt in Montana. A few days later, he urged Taco Bell to use Montana beef in its restaurants. In between, Tester introduced S. 219, the Senate Campaign Disclosure Parity Act. The measure would require senators and U.S. Senate candidates to file their campaign finance reports with the Federal Election Commission -- electronically.

February 1, 2011 | Former Republican governor Jon Huntsman of Utah is resigning from his post as U.S. ambassador to China, and rumor has it, he is considering running for the U.S. presidency instead. Huntsman has been the nation's top diplomat in China since the summer of 2009.

January 28, 2011 | A Center for Responsive Politics analysis finds that many of the commission's 10 members are prolific political donors with five of the 10 members donating to at least one of the two congressional leaders responsible their commission appointments

December 2, 2010 | Reps. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and John Boehner (R-Ohio) lawmakers have been in Congress for at least two decades, and have plenty influence to show for it. Political watchers are prepared for the rivals -- their positions switched -- to resume their sparring in January. OpenSecrets Blog, meanwhile, details who may have the key political advantages as the curtain opens on the 112th Congress.

August 10, 2010 | Several of the players on President Barack Obama's basketball party dream team made sizable contributions to his presidential campaign and/or related Democratic political committees, the Center for Responsive Politics finds.

July 27, 2010 | Senate Republicans today blocked legislation calling for new disclosure rules for campaign advertisements. A unified Democratic caucus generated 57 "yes" votes -- three shy of the 60 votes needed to break a Republican filibuster and allow the legislation, known as the DISCLOSE Act, to advance to an up-or-down vote.

July 20, 2010 | Last Thursday, Rep. Mary Jo Kilroy (D-Ohio) introduced H.R. 5751, the Fee on Lobbyists Act, which would require lobbyists to pay an annual fee of $25 to the Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives and $25 to the Secretary of the U.S. Senate for each client they have. Money raised would be used by to enforce the rules regarding federal lobbyists.

May 19, 2010 | Massive campaign war chests and establishment endorsements were not enough to be victorious in some of the country's most contested Senate primaries Tuesday night. One sitting Senator was defeated and another is heading to a run-off in three weeks, as candidates worked to distance themselves from Washington and position themselves as crusaders against special interests in charged anti-incumbent environments.

May 12, 2010 | Upon her arrival in the White House, first lady Michelle Obama launched the "Let's Move" campaign, encouraging healthier eating habits and reduced obesity rates -- a campaign for which she formally unveiled the goals Tuesday. Yet as the first lady and lawmakers work to enact these goals, they must navigate substantial corporate interests when making decisions about the strictness of regulations and standards for nutrition.

April 28, 2010 | In a high-profile legal challenge, the U.S. Supreme Court tomorrow will tackle questions about First Amendment freedom of speech rights, the nature of signing petitions for ballot measures, the public's right to know and the government's interests in preserving the integrity of the election process.

April 22, 2010 | Freshman Rep. Joseph Cao (R-La.) is one of just three House Republicans bucking their party leadership by offering appropriation requests for fiscal year 2011. Cao's requests -- better known as earmarks -- total about $517 million, of which $800,000 would be destined for two projects at a hospital in New Orleans. While that's itself a small slice of Cao's total requests, it's notable since Cao also accepted campaign contributions from two of its executives.

March 17, 2010 | WIFE OF SUPREME COURT JUSTICE AIMS TO GAIN FROM CITIZENS UNITED: The Supreme Court shook up the world of money-in-politics when it opened the doors to increased corporate spending in the case Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission.

March 9, 2010 | The Organization for International Investment, a trade association representing U.S. subsidiaries of foreign companies, has hired a Democratic lawyer to lobby against legislation that would potentially ban its members' money from U.S. politics.

March 2, 2010 | As Democrats try not to let political turbulence slim their ranks and Republicans focus on winning back the majority, money continues to pour into campaign coffers. Big-money congressional races are often in competitive states or districts that could wind up flipping for Republican or Democratic, a Center for Responsive Politics review of campaign finance reports through the end of 2009 shows.

February 22, 2010 | WHITE HOUSE, REPUBLICANS READY FOR HEALTH CARE SHOWDOWN: President Barack Obama is slated to today release text of a broad "starting point" for a televised health care reform summit later this week with congressional Republicans. Any good reason to think that lobbyists won't be hard at work, too, as politicians attempt to restart all-but-dormant reform efforts?

January 28, 2010 | President Barack Obama, standing before a full session of Congress within the U.S. Capitol, accused the U.S. Supreme Court of opening "the floodgates for special interests -- including foreign corporations" through its 5-4 ruling last week in the case Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission. A visably agitated Justice Samuel Alito, sitting just feet away from Obama as he delivered the presidential State of the Union address, shook his head, made a face and appeared to mouth "simply not true."

November 23, 2009 | Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) chairs the powerful Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs. Dodd is now spearheading new efforts to tackle financial sector regulatory reform. Over the past 20 years, Dodd's most generous campaign supporter has also been the finance, insurance and real estate sector, which is filled with companies directly affected by legislation shepherded by the Banking Committee.

November 20, 2009 | GEOGRAPHY AWARE: Today marks the close of Geography Awareness Week. To celebrate the importance of this subject, National Geographic asked all 100 senators to draw a picture of their home state and label at least three important places. A handful of senators responded to the challenge. You can also use maps on OpenSecrets.org to track the money flowing into congressional races across the country or to find campaign contributions by state or zip code.

November 2, 2009 | With Republican Diedre Scozzafava ending her bid in for Congress and endorsing her Democratic opponent Bill Owens, Owens and Conservative Party nominee Doug are now vying to win over Scozzafava's supporters, including those who lent financial support to her campaign.

September 24, 2009 | The U.S. Senate vacancy created by the death of liberal lion Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) is prompting another trip through the revolving door of political influence for longtime Kennedy ally Paul G. Kirk, Jr. Kirk was an aide to Kennedy from 1969 until 1977. He subsequently went on to join the law firm Sullivan & Worcester, where he has worked as a partner and lobbyist. Since 1989, he and his wife have also given $65,325 to Democratic candidates and committees.

September 9, 2009 | If the Supreme Court is currently the dam blocking the flow of unlimited corporate funds used for political expenditures, today's re-hearing of the campaign finance case Citizens United v. the Federal Election Commission indicated that the justices may be poised to put at least a few holes in that barricade.

September 9, 2009 | Scores of impassioned citizens flocked to the Supreme Court in the pre-dawn hours this morning to witness history -- the first appearance by Justice Sonia Sotomayor and also the re-argument of the high profile campaign finance case Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission.

September 3, 2009 | So far in 2009, 73 local, state or territorial governmental entities have spent at least $100,000 between January and June to lobby the federal government. More than 750 have spent at least $20,000.

August 26, 2009 | Embattled political financier Hassan Nemazee, who faces decades in prison after federal authorities arrested him for allegedly attempting to secure a fradulent loan from Citigroup, has donated money to 75 federal political candidates, a Center for Responsive Politics analysis indicates.

July 23, 2009 | With deficit worries gripping Washington, lawmakers including House Education and Labor Committee Chairman George Miller (D-Calif.) and Rep. Thomas Petri (R-Wis.) have proposed cutting taxpayer subsidies to private institutions that issue student loans. But groups such as Sallie Mae are spending big money in opposition to such proposals.

July 17, 2009 | House and Senate leaders last week named 10 members to the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission, a bipartisan panel that Congress created in May to investigate the causes of last year's financial crisis. The selections include businessmen, ex-lawmakers, and academics who have together donated more than $1 million to federal candidates since 198

June 25, 2009 | In the first three months of 2009, the pharmaceutical and health products industry has spent more than $66.5 million on lobbying–an amount that translates into $1.2 million every day Congress has been in session. Just how much influence will that amount buy?

January 26, 2009 | Although it's unclear to what extent businessman Raghuveer Nayak was involved in Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich's alleged scheme to sell President Obama's Senate seat, what is clear is Nayak's commitment to funding the campaigns of the governor, the new president, the new vice president and others in Congress and the administration.

December 18, 2008 | At the Center for Responsive Politics, we've asked former presidents for years to disclose the names of donors to their presidential libraries, which can accept unlimited contributions from anyone. It appears that all it takes to spur an ex-president to action is the appointment of his spouse to be Secretary of State. The William J. Clinton Foundation, which funds the former president's library in addition to his other charitable initiatives, today disclosed all donors back to 1997. Here are our observations and a list of the donors who gave at least $500,001.

December 11, 2008 | Although local and state governments usually send lobbyists to Capitol Hill on their behalf, mayors and governors from across the nation have been meeting with President-elect Barack Obama and Congress in the last week with their economic wish lists. Despite the money crunch, this year city, state and municipal governments are on track to spend more on federal lobbying than they have in the last two years.

September 29, 2008 | The oil and gas industry, under the spotlight this fall with energy at the forefront of political discourse, isn't hesitating to put some of its record profits into the hands of candidates who support its cause (or those it's seeking to convert). So far this election cycle, the oil and gas industry has given $12.3 million total to congressional candidates. The nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics has identified the candidates who have received the most money from oil and gas interests in this election cycle, and Capital Eye selected a few races to more deeply examine the impact of well-digger dollars on politics.

August 7, 2008 | Coal and nuclear power are the biggest sources of electricity in the U.S., accounting for roughly 70 percent of the nation's electricity. While producers of both sources believe that the country needs a well-balanced fuel portfolio, both industries are seeking an advantage by spending their fair share on campaign contributions and lobbying this election cycle, reminding those in Congress of their integral role in keeping the lights on.

April 18, 2008 | When environmentalists, lobbyists and eco-friendly citizens come a-knockin' on lawmakers' office doors on Earth Day next week, Democrats (and some Republicans) will detail their legislation that directs taxes collected from the oil and gas industry towards renewable energy initiatives. What they probably won't mention is that lawmakers themselves aren't taking a risk on them with their own money.

May 29, 2007 | Politicians set up so-called leadership PACs to raise even more money. But they don’t want you to know what they’re doing. __________________ Currently, a leadership political action committee, or leadership PAC, is not required to disclose the lawmaker with whom it is affiliated. North Carolina Rep. Walter B. Jones is hoping to shine more light…

November 8, 2006 | While voters in some states are still waiting to see who will represent them in Congress, one thing is certain: Money was a clear winner in the 2006 elections. Equally clear was voters' concern about corruption in Washington; officeholders tied to scandal lost in disproportionate numbers.

September 25, 2006 | Center for Responsive Politics urges U.S. Senate to file their campaign finance reports electronically ____________________ As the congressional election approaches, supporters of open government have a non-partisan opportunity to take action, which will save taxpayer money and improve the transparency of campaign finance. The Center for Responsive Politics, along with other watchdog groups, members of…

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